Scanning apparatus and sheet conveyer

Abstract

A scanning apparatus is provided with a conveyer having a plurality of conveying rollers and configured to convey an original sheet, a scanning device configured to scan the original sheet, and a controller. The controller is configured to execute a detection process of detecting an error which causes stoppage of conveying the original sheet by the conveyer, an identifying process of identifying a type of the error detecting in the detecting process, and a notification process of notifying a user of an operation which the controller encouraging the user to execute when the controller causes the conveyer to re-convey the original sheet that has been stopped, depending on the type of the error identified by the identifying process.

What is claimed is: 
     
       1. A scanning apparatus, comprising:
 a conveyer having a plurality of conveying rollers and configured to convey an original sheet; 
 a scanning device configured to scan an image on the original sheet; 
 a sensor configured to detect an error which causes stoppage of conveyance of the original sheet by the conveyer; and 
 a controller, 
 the controller being configured to execute: 
 a detection process of detecting, based on an output of the sensor, one of a plurality of errors, which causes stoppage of conveying the original sheet by the conveyer, distinctively from the other of the plurality of errors; 
 an identifying process of identifying a type of the one of the plurality of errors detected in the detecting process; 
 a notification process of notifying a user of an operation to be executed by the user, depending on the type of the one of the plurality of errors identified by the identifying process, to cause the conveyer to re-convey the original sheet that has been stopped; and 
 a sheet length detection process of detecting a sheet length, which is a length of the sheet in a sheet conveying direction, of the original sheet conveyed by the conveyer, 
 wherein the controller detects an error in the detection process and identify that the type of error is a short sheet error in the identifying process when the sheet length detected in the sheet length detection process is shorter than a distance between two conveying rollers which are adjacent to each other in the sheet conveying direction, and 
 wherein the controller notifies an operation of changing an orientation of the original sheet when the error is identified to be the short sheet error in the identifying process, the orientation including at least a portrait orientation and a landscape orientation. 
 
     
     
       2. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 further comprising an inside-path sheet sensor which is configured to output different signals depending on whether the original sheet is present or absent at a predetermined position on the conveying path of the conveyer, 
 wherein the controller is further configured to execute a sheet length detection process of detecting a length of the original sheet, which is conveyed by the conveyer, in the conveying direction, 
 wherein the controller detects an error in the detection process when it is determined, based on the output of the inside-path sheet sensor, a change between the presence/absence of the original sheet does not occur at a predetermined timing, and 
 wherein the controller identifies that the type of error is the short sheet error in the identifying process when the sheet length detected in the sheet length detection process is shorter than a distance between two conveying rollers which are adjacent to each other in the sheet conveying direction, 
 wherein the controller notifies an operation of changing an orientation of the original sheet by switching longer sides and shorter sides when the short sheet error is identified in the identifying process when the error is identified to be the short sheet error in the identifying process, the orientation including at least a portrait orientation and a landscape orientation. 
 
     
     
       3. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein the controller is further configured to execute a sheet width detection process of detecting a sheet width which is a length of the sheet in a direction perpendicular to the sheet conveying direction, and 
 wherein, when it is determined in the error is the short sheet error in the identifying process, and when the sheet width is detected in the sheet width detection process is longer than a distance between two conveying rollers which are adjacent to each other, the controller notifies an operation of changing an orientation of the original sheet by switching longer sides and shorter sides in the notifying process. 
 
     
     
       4. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 1 ,
 wherein the controller is further configured to execute a first rotating process in which, when the controller has caused the scanning device to scan the original sheet conveyed by the conveyer after notified the user to change the orientation of the original sheet in the notification process, the controller rotates the scanned image so that the orientation of the scanned image is aligned with the orientation of scanned images of original sheets which were scanned before the error was detected. 
 
     
     
       5. A scanning apparatus, comprising,
 a conveyer having a plurality of conveying rollers and configured to convey an original sheet; 
 a scanning device configured to scan an image on the original sheet; and 
 a controller, 
 the controller being configured to execute: 
 a detection process of detecting an error which causes stoppage of conveying the original sheet by the conveyer; 
 an identifying process of identifying a type of the error in the detecting process; 
 a notification process of notifying a user of an operation to be executed by the user, depending on the type of the error identified by the identifying process, to cause the conveyer to re-convey the original sheet that has been stopped; and 
 an outside-path sheet sensor configured to output different signals depending on whether the original sheet is present/absent at a detection position which is located outside the conveying path of the conveyer in a specific direction which is perpendicular to both the conveying direction and the axial direction of the conveying roller, 
 wherein the controller is configured to:
 detect the error in the detection process and identify that the error is caused by the original sheet being caught in the roller in the identification process when the outside-path sheet sensor outputs the signal indicating that the original sheet is present at the specific position; and 
 notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the original sheet by at least changing the orientation of the original sheet and turning over the original sheet, the orientation including at least a portrait orientation and a landscape orientation. 
 
 
     
     
       6. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 5 ,
 wherein the outside-path sheet sensor is arranged above or below the conveying path in the specific direction, 
 wherein the scanning device includes:
 a first scanning unit configured to scan a first surface of the original sheet which is being conveyed by the conveyer; and 
 a second scanning unit configured to scan a second surface of the original sheet which is being conveyed by the conveyer, 
 
 wherein the controller is configured to notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the original sheet by turning over the original sheet. 
 
     
     
       7. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 6 ,
 wherein the controller is configured to scan the original sheet using one of the first scanning unit and the second scanning unit which is different from one being used before the error was detected when the one-side scanning mode is set and after the controller notified, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the original sheet by turning over the original sheet. 
 
     
     
       8. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 6 ,
 wherein the controller is configured to execute a sorting process of changing an order of an image scanned by the first scanning unit and an image scanned by the second scanning unit, when the both-side scanning mode is set and the controller caused the scanning device to scan the original sheet conveyed by the conveyer after the controller notified, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the original sheet by turning over the original sheet. 
 
     
     
       9. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 5 ,
 wherein the controller is configured to notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the original sheet by changing the orientation of the original sheet. 
 
     
     
       10. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 9 ,
 wherein the controller is configured to execute a second rotating process of rotating a scanned image of the original sheet to be aligned with an orientation of the scanned images which were scanned before the error was detected, after the controller notified, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the original sheet by changing the orientation of the original sheet and caused the scanning device to scan the image of the original sheet conveyed by the conveyer. 
 
     
     
       11. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 5 ,
 the controller is configured to notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the conveying speed of the original sheet to a lower speed. 
 
     
     
       12. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 5 ,
 wherein the controller execute a re-notification process of re-notifying the user of usage of a carrier sheet when an error is detected in the detection process during conveyance of the original sheet after the notification was notified in the notification process. 
 
     
     
       13. A scanning apparatus, comprising:
 a conveyer having a plurality of conveying rollers and configured to convey an original sheet; 
 a scanning device configured to scan an image on the original sheet; 
 a sensor configured to detect an error which causes stoppage of conveyance of the original sheet by the conveyer; and 
 a controller, 
 the controller being configured to execute: 
 a detection process of detecting, based on an output of the sensor, one of a plurality of errors, which causes stoppage of conveying the original sheet by the conveyer, distinctively from the other of the plurality of errors; 
 an identifying process of identifying a type of the one of the plurality of errors detected in the detecting process; and 
 a notification process of notifying a user of an operation to be executed by the user, depending on the type of the one of the plurality of errors identified by the identifying process, to cause the conveyer to re-convey the original sheet that has been stopped; 
 further comprising an inside-path sheet sensor configured to output different signals depending on whether the original sheet is absent/present at a predetermined position on the conveying path of the conveyer, 
 wherein the controller is further configured to:
 execute an inclination detecting process of inclination of the original sheet conveyed by the conveyer; 
 detect an error in the detection process when a switching between the absence and presence of the original sheet based on the inside-path sheet sensor does not occur at a predetermined timing and identify that the error is the sheet jam error when the inclination detected in the inclination detection process is greater than a predetermined inclination; and 
 notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set an original sheet guide when it is identified that the error is the sheet jam error. 
 
 
     
     
       14. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 13 ,
 further comprising an inside-path sheet sensor configured to output different signals depending on whether the original sheet is absent/present at a predetermined position on the conveying path of the conveyer, 
 wherein the controller is configured to:
 detect an error in the detection process and identify that the error is a sheet jam error in the identification process when a switching between the absence and presence of the original sheet based on the inside-path sheet sensor does not occur at a predetermined timing; and 
 notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to lower the conveying speed of the original sheet when it is identified in the identification process that the sheet jam error has occurred. 
 
 
     
     
       15. A scanning apparatus, comprising:
 a conveyer having a plurality of conveying rollers and configured to convey an original sheet; 
 a scanning device configured to scan an image on the original sheet; 
 a sensor configured to detect an error which causes stoppage of conveyance of the original sheet by the conveyer; and 
 a controller, 
 the controller being configured to execute: 
 a detection process of detecting, based on an output of the sensor, one of a plurality of errors, which causes stoppage of conveying the original sheet by the conveyer, distinctively from the other of the plurality of errors; 
 an identifying process of identifying a type of the one of the plurality of errors detected in the detecting process; and 
 a notification process of notifying a user of an operation to be executed by the user, depending on the type of the one of the plurality of errors identified by the identifying process, to cause the conveyer to re-convey the original sheet that has been stopped; 
 further comprising:
 a sheet tray configured to accommodate a plurality of the original sheets; 
 a separation roller pair configured to feed the plurality of the original sheets accommodated in the sheet tray toward the conveying path one by one; and 
 an overlap conveying sensor configured to output different signals depending on whether overlap conveying in which a plurality of original sheet are conveyed in an overlapped state, is occurring, 
 
 wherein the separation roller pair is configured to be operable in:
 a first mode in which one roller of the separation roller pair is caused to be driven to rotate by another roller of the separation roller pair; and 
 a second mode in which the one roller of the separation roller pair is caused to rotate in a direction opposite to the other roller of the separation roller pair, and 
 
 wherein the controller is further configured to:
 detect an error in the detection process and identify the error is the overlap conveying error, when the overlap conveying sensor outputs a signal indicating occurrence of the overlap conveying; and 
 notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation of setting the second mode, when the error was detected in the detection process, the error is identified to be the overlap conveying error, and the first mode is set. 
 
 
     
     
       16. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 15 ,
 further comprising an overlap conveying sensor configured to output different signals depending on whether overlap conveying, in which a plurality of original sheets are conveyed as being overlapped, is occurring, 
 wherein the controller is configured to:
 detect an error in the detection process and identify an overlap conveying error in the identification process when the overlap conveying sensor outputs a signal indicating occurrence of the overlap conveying; and 
 notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to invalidate the signal output by the overlap conveying sensor when the identification process identifies the overlap conveying error. 
 
 
     
     
       17. The scanning apparatus according to  claim 15 ,
 wherein the controller is configured to notify, in the notification process, the user of an operation to set the signal output by the overlap conveying sensor to be invalidated, when the error was detected in the detection process, the error was identified to be the overlap conveying error in the identification process, and the second mode was set. 
 
     
     
       18. A sheet conveyer, comprising:
 a conveyer configured to convey a sheet with user of a plurality of conveying rollers; 
 a sensor configured to detect an error which causes stoppage of conveyance of the original sheet by the conveyer; and 
 a controller, 
 wherein the controller is configured to execute:
 a detection process of detecting, based on an output of the sensor, one of a plurality of errors, which causes stoppage of conveyance of the sheet by the conveyer, distinctively from the other of the plurality of errors; 
 an identification process of identifying a type of the one of the plurality of errors detected in the detection process; 
 a notification process of notifying a user of a recommendable operation to re-execute conveyance of the sheet, which has caused stoppage of the conveyance, based on the type of the one of the plurality of errors identified by the identification process; and 
 a sheet length detection process of detecting a sheet length, which is a length of the sheet in a sheet conveying direction, of the original sheet conveyed by the conveyer, 
 
 wherein the controller detects an error in the detection process and identify that the type of error is a short sheet error in the identifying process when the sheet length detected in the sheet length detection process is shorter than a distance between two conveying rollers which are adjacent to each other in the sheet conveying direction, and 
 wherein the controller notifies an operation of changing an orientation of the original sheet when the error is identified to be the short sheet error in the identifying process, the orientation including at least a portrait orientation and a landscape orientation.